Privacy Policy

Effective date: October 7, 2026 · Last updated: October 7, 2026

The Long Island Black Educators Association (“LIBEA,” “we,” “us” or “our”) is a nonprofit professional association serving educators across Nassau and Suffolk counties, New York. We respect your privacy and are committed to protecting the personal information you share with us. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect through libea.org (the “Site”), how we use and protect it, who we share it with, and the choices and rights you have.

In short: we collect only what we need to run our membership, programs, scholarships and communications; we never sell your personal information; and you can ask us at any time to see, correct or delete it.

1. Information we collect

Information you give us

• Membership: when you join or renew, your name, email address, phone number, school district, employer, position, certification area, discipline, professional interests and career goals, plus your membership level and dates.
• Payments and donations: your name, billing details, the amount, and any designation you choose (for example, a scholarship). Card and bank details are entered directly with our payment providers, not stored by LIBEA (see section 5).
• Contact and interest forms: your name, email address, the reason for contacting us and your message, including scholarship interest forms.
• Newsletter: your email address and, if provided, your name.
• Member account and directory: your login details, and, only if you choose to opt in, the profile details you agree to show other members in the member directory.
• Event participation: information you provide when registering for or attending our events, such as the Annual Recognition Symposium.

Information collected automatically

• Technical data: your IP address, browser and device type, and pages visited, recorded in standard server logs for security and to keep the Site working.
• Cookies: small files needed for logins, the shopping cart and checkout (see section 6).

We do not intentionally collect sensitive personal information such as Social Security numbers, health information or government ID numbers through the Site, and we ask that you do not send it to us.

2. How we use your information

• To process memberships, renewals, payments and donations, and to send receipts and renewal reminders.
• To provide member benefits, including networking, mentorship, job-opportunity alerts matched to your certification and district, and members-only content.
• To administer scholarships, awards and recognition programs.
• To respond to your questions and requests.
• To send our newsletter and organizational updates, where you have signed up or are a member. You can unsubscribe at any time.
• To keep accurate membership records for the board, meet our nonprofit, tax and accounting obligations, and comply with law.
• To protect the Site, our members and LIBEA against fraud, spam and misuse, and to improve the Site.

We do not use your information for automated decision-making that has legal or similarly significant effects on you, and we do not sell or rent it, or share it for targeted (cross-context behavioral) advertising.

3. Legal bases for processing

Where laws such as the EU/UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) apply, we rely on: contract (to provide your membership or process your payment); consent (for the newsletter and the optional member directory, which you may withdraw at any time); legitimate interests (to run, secure and improve our association and the Site, balanced against your rights); and legal obligation (for financial and tax records).

4. How we share information

We share personal information only as described here:

• Service providers who help us operate, under obligations to protect your information and use it only for our purposes: our website host; payment processors (PayPal and, if offered, other payment providers); our email newsletter provider (such as MailerLite or Mailchimp); and Google Workspace, which we use to keep the board’s membership records.
• The LIBEA executive board and authorized volunteers, who need membership and program information to carry out their roles.
• Other members, only for the directory details you choose to share by opting in.
• Legal and safety reasons, when required by law, subpoena or court order, or to protect the rights, property or safety of LIBEA, our members or others.
• Organizational changes, if LIBEA merges or transfers its activities to a successor organization, which will be bound by this policy.

Scholarship recipients and award honorees may be recognized publicly on our Site, social media and at events. We will ask for permission first, and for students under 18, from a parent or guardian.

5. Payments and donations

Online payments are processed securely by PayPal, which also accepts debit and credit cards without a PayPal account. Your full card number is entered on the payment provider’s secure pages and is never received or stored by LIBEA. We keep only the transaction record (such as your name, the amount, the date and a reference number). If you pay by Zelle or bank transfer, we keep the payment confirmation needed to match your payment. Payment providers handle your data under their own privacy policies, for example the PayPal Privacy Statement.

LIBEA is a nonprofit organization. Please consult your tax advisor regarding the deductibility of dues and donations.

6. Cookies and similar technologies

We use only the cookies needed for the Site to work: to keep you signed in to your member account, to remember the items in your cart and complete checkout securely, and to protect forms against spam. We do not use advertising cookies or sell cookie data. You can block or delete cookies in your browser settings, but signing in and checkout may not work without them.

7. Third-party services, links and embedded content

Pages may load fonts from Google Fonts, and posts may embed content such as YouTube videos, Google Slides or Facebook videos. These services may receive your IP address and set their own cookies under their own privacy policies. Our share buttons are simple links; Facebook, LinkedIn, WhatsApp, X or your email program receive information only if you click to share. Links to other websites, including job postings and recommended resources, are provided for convenience; we are not responsible for their content or privacy practices.

8. How long we keep information

• Membership records: for as long as you are a member, and up to seven years after your membership ends, for organizational history and record-keeping.
• Payment and donation records: as long as required for accounting and tax purposes, generally seven years.
• Contact and interest form messages: up to three years, unless needed longer for an ongoing matter.
• Newsletter: until you unsubscribe.

When information is no longer needed, we delete it or make it anonymous.

9. How we protect information

We use reasonable administrative, technical and physical safeguards, consistent with standards such as New York’s SHIELD Act, including encrypted (HTTPS) connections, restricted access to member records for authorized board members and volunteers only, strong passwords, signed and encrypted connections between our Site and our membership records, and keeping our software up to date. No method of transmission or storage is completely secure; if a breach affecting your personal information occurs, we will notify you and the authorities as required by law.

10. Your rights and choices

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to:

• Access the personal information we hold about you and receive a copy in a portable format;
• Correct inaccurate or incomplete information;
• Delete your information, subject to records we must keep by law;
• Object to or restrict certain uses, and withdraw consent at any time (for example, for the newsletter or member directory);
• Opt out of any sale or sharing of personal information. We do not sell or share it for targeted advertising, so no action is needed;
• Not be discriminated against for exercising your rights; and
• Complain to a data protection authority if you are in a region that provides one.

Members can update most profile details from their account. To make any other request, email info@libea.org. We may need to verify your identity, and we will respond within 30 days (or the time required by applicable law). You may use an authorized agent where the law allows. Every newsletter includes an unsubscribe link.

11. Children and students

The Site is intended for adults. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13, in line with the U.S. Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). High-school students applying for LIBEA scholarships should do so with the involvement of a parent, guardian or school counselor, and we use their information only to administer the scholarship. If you believe a child under 13 has given us personal information, please contact us and we will delete it.

12. International visitors

LIBEA is based in New York, United States, and the Site is hosted in the United States. If you visit from another country, your information will be transferred to and processed in the United States, where data protection laws may differ from those in your country. Where required, we rely on appropriate safeguards for such transfers.

13. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy as our programs, services or the law change. We will post the updated version on this page with a new “Last updated” date and, for significant changes, notify members by email or a notice on the Site.

14. Contact us

Questions, requests or concerns about your privacy? Contact us:

Long Island Black Educators Association (LIBEA)
P.O. Box 1056, Central Islip, NY, United States
Email: info@libea.org